


Disillusionment and Regress

by TarantulaLOL



Category: Dramione - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, Alternate Universe - Hogwarts, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-09
Updated: 2021-02-09
Packaged: 2021-03-14 19:22:28
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 17,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29301090
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TarantulaLOL/pseuds/TarantulaLOL
Summary: They won the war and Hermione is glad to finally have a chance to just learn. That's the thing though, she can never seem to have a normal year at Hogwarts. The ministry has detected a presence, maybe the dark lord is back or maybe it's just nothing. She can't really deal with that though, Hermione has enough of her own problems, the aftershocks of the war and the possibility that she isn't who she thinks.
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4





	1. Chapter 1

Hi, this is going to be the first fic I've written. I'll do my best to keep up and update it. Let me know if you ever see any issues want to see more of anything or have suggestions. I'm super excited to see what everyone thinks.

I also should mention I'm American so if you have any suggestions in making my writing more authentic please say something. I'm all good with criticism.

This will be a slow burn, so the romance will take a while but I'll make sure to make the plot interesting in the meanwhile. I'm planning on having Draco be toxic as I think he wouldn't be fully reformed only months after the war, but let me know what you guys think.

Also, I don't have anyone editing this so expect mistakes, but I'll do my best and make sure on having a good well-written plot. And if you see any plot holes PLEASE let me know ASAP because I will fix them. Okay, that's all.

***Please note***

All the characters and locations belong to J.K. Rowling. The only thing that belongs to me is the plot. ;). I hope you all enjoy xxx


	2. Revelations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The golden trio return to Hogwarts, a beginning of year party commences.

***

 **Revelations**  
rev·e·la·tion  
_/ˌrevəˈlāSH(ə)n/_  
noun _plural_  
noun: **revelations**  
a surprising and previously unknown fact, especially one that is made known in a dramatic way.   
_"revelations about his personal life"._   
the divine or supernatural disclosure to humans of something relating to human existence or the world.   
_"an attempt to reconcile Darwinian theories with biblical revelation"_

***

They had won the war. Actually won. Hermione had hope but she was never an optimist like her friends and the war had taken a toll on her mental health. Spending the summer home away from magic was a welcome break at first but she also felt completely isolated. She was left to pick up the pieces in her parents' abandoned life. Hermione was able to bring their memory back but not without consequence. There were gaps in her parent's memory, and when she first brought them back from Australia they had a hard time getting back to their previous life. Hermione was able to help them and after a month most of their memories were back but Hermione would occasionally mention something that went right over their heads. They recognized Hermione as their daughter but it seemed as though aspects of their life in Australia were merged with their memories. Her mother now had an affinity for photography, and her father enjoyed fishing. Characteristics Hermione had never observed in her parents previously. The one thing they carried the most from their time in Australia- they wanted another child.  
Hermione always knew her mother had her rather young. Right out of dental school. She was never quite sure whether that was a calculated decision to allow her mother time to care for Hermione before she dove into her career or if she was an accident. Hermione was more than happy, she had always wanted to have a sibling. While Ron and Harry were like brothers to her, she knew that she was missing out on something. She had seen it in the Burrow as the Wesley's interacted and she desperately wanted to take part in it.

That was how she discovered it.

Her mother told her she was considering seeing a specialist as she was unsure if she would be able to have another child. Hermione had insisted that her mother let Hermione care for her while she was home. She was more than capable and anyways while magic wasn't allowed outside of school, the simple charms to understand anatomy weren't nearly enough to set off wards.  
Hermione dove into her research and finally found a simple charm that would illuminate the tip of her wand. Green for the sign of fertility, purple for infertility. Simple. Until the end of her wand turned bright red. So, did her cheeks. Hermione was embarrassed, she never made mistakes when it came to magic. She turned back to her textbook in search of an answer in understanding what she had done wrong. But she hadn't done anything wrong. She soon discovered that the red meant that her mother couldn't have another child. Correction her mother couldn't have children. She couldn't have had Hermione. Her mother had never been able to have children and never would, no amount of muggle care or magic would allow her to do so. Hermione didn't believe her discovery. She resigned herself to believe that she misunderstood and she was simply out of practice.

However, on some level, Hermione's subconscious was horrified to discover this. Hermione continued on ignoring her discovery for the rest of the summer occupying herself reading various muggle books and occasionally visiting old friends. Hermione decided to tell her mother that her magic wasn't strong enough outside of school. But her mother eventually went to a fertility doctor and made the discovery for herself. Well, a partial discovery. Either her doctor didn't tell her she had never been fertile, he was too thick to figure it out, or her mother knew. That's when Hermione had to find out for herself. The night before she went back to Hogwarts she asked her mother if she would consider adopting if she wasn't able to find a good enough doctor. Hermione's mother said no, she wanted to only have biological children. She never saw herself as a motherly figure and was worried that she wouldn't care for a child the same way she cared for Hermione.

Hermione didn't know what to think. Either her mother didn't want to tell her or she was blissfully unaware that Hermione wasn't her own. Hermione looked at the situation as something that affected her mother. Hermione simply had detached herself from the situation. However, she realized she needed answers. Hermione had to figure out who was being lied to. She pined over her options and decided on legilimens. While this would usually cause issues as it's a large enough spell to alert the ministry of underage magic, she had been cleared to use it throughout her parent's recovery. And it was just a peek. She could be in and out of her parent's minds in a matter of seconds. She would be careful, and she would have her answer and hopefully, she wouldn't have to think about it again.

She wasn't prepared for what she found in her mother's memories. It was 1978 her mother had just finished school. Monica and Wendell had been enjoying their few months of vacation before they began their careers. And then there was nothing. And then there was Hermione. And a nursery. And a stroller. And everything that went along with a baby. But there wasn't a baby shower, a doctor's visit, sonogram. Nothing.

How could her mother not remember being pregnant? Where had the time gone? Where had Hermione come from?

Hermione was lucky she had already packed because her mind was preoccupied and she spent the rest of the night thinking, unable to sleep. She could barely function. She needed to put on a brave face the next day. She was going to be seeing her best friends. Harry and Ron. She hadn't seen them in months and couldn't wait to see them, talk to them. But Hermione knew she couldn't tell them. Harry already had enough to worry about. Besides Hermione didn't even know anything yet. For all, she knew it could be nothing. She did have a nasty habit of working herself up over nothing. This would be her last year at Hogwarts and she needed to make the best of it before she began her career. This would be her year to learn without any interruptions. 

No war, just her books, classes, and friends.

*** 

While Hermione has been on the train every year on her way to and from Hogwarts, she knew this would be one of her last trips. She wanted to savor the experience. It meant something to her. The train was her first glimpse into the wizarding world. Her parents weren't wizards like the other students. The other students at least got to live with magic, be around it. It was a giant void when she was at home, she was missing a portion of herself. She always missed her parents while she was away at school, but she missed her magic when she was at home. She felt so isolated with no magic. But it wasn't her parents' fault.

Her parents.......

With all her excitement, she had forgotten about her new discovery. And as she approached the platform she had to collect herself before she readied herself to board the train and see her friends. Hermione had decided that she would forget about her problem until she was at school and her classes were going well. She promised herself that she would get to the bottom of whatever was going on but it couldn't get in the way of her school work.

She approached the platform and passed through. Hermione opened her eyes and relished in the chaos. First-year parents in a frenzy sending their young wizards and witched off for the first time. Other students rising to see their friends. A flash of red hair caught her eye. Hermione looked again. Ron. He was walking onto the train. Hermione forgot about all of her previous anxiety and rushed to pass her luggage off to the drop off point and boarded the train. 

Hermione hopped on the train and moved towards the back knowing she would find her friends in the same compartment they always shared. Hermione forced a smile as she got closer. She could already hear Ginny's laugh and conversation. Even without the stress, she'd been dealing with at home, the events and experiences of the war were constantly playing in the back of her mind. Hermione was worried about how her friends had handled the aftermath as she didn't do a great job of keeping in touch over the hectic summer. She came to the door of the compartment and paused. Hermione brushed her skirt, made sure her shirt was tucked in, smoothed the back of her hair, smiled a bit harder, and opened the doors.

Four familiar faces looked at her. Harry and Ginny sat on one side and Ron and Neville sat opposite of them. Neville popped up awkwardly gesturing for Hermione to sit between him and Ron. She smiled at him and sat between them. Sitting next to Ron was easier than Hermione thought it was going to be. She had forgotten to even worry about seeing him after their breakup. While she was the one who did the breaking up it was still hard on her, for at least a day or two. Not to say that she wasn't upset that she ended a relationship, she just simply had more important things to think about. She just simply wasn't in the right headspace for a relationship. And that's what she told Ron before she left for home in the final months of the summer. She told Ron that she didn't want their relationship to be tainted by her residual stress from the war and that they should reevaluate and reconsider where they stood at a later date. Simple really.  
Hermione folded her hands in her lap and looked down. It seemed like she may be the only one who was unaffected by the breakup. She had heard laughs coming from the room moments ago, the silence was a result of the breakup. Hermione's silence and somber look was a result of what she guessed was PTSD but theirs most definitely had to do with her. She silently thanked merlin that she wasn't able to hold her smile, they didn't need to think she was worried about something other than Ron and how the breakup didn't even cross her mind. She glanced around and caught Ginny's eyes.

"Hermione" Ginny cleared her thought. "I've missed you so much. You have no idea. How was your summer?"

Hermione bit her lip before saying "uneventful. How was yours?"

Ginny didn't even need an invitation and she began detailing every aspect of her summer. Hermione glanced over at Harry making eye contact and smiling. It took a few moments but friends all seemed happy. Truly happy. And Hermione was happy for them. Truly. But as the train ride passed she found herself getting lost in her thoughts, not even a year ago the school they were traveling towards was a war zone. The rest of the train ride her friends chatted and smiled, and laughed, and Hermione did her best to go along with them. In fact, she did such a good job they didn't even notice her discomfort grow as they got closer to the school.

\---

The sorting ceremony proceeded as it had every year, but Professor McGonagall was in charge as she was the new headmaster. The first years were all sorted accordingly and then the evening transitioned into the head girl and boy for the school. Hermione squeezed Harry's hand and he squeezed her hand back. They were both hoping to be head girl and head boy, it only seemed right. This was going to be a good year. As long as Hermione kept her head up, and didn't let anyone on to the fact that she couldn't handle them smiling and acting as if everything was alright, she would be alright. She could do it, she was good at pretending. Hermione would just act as though the war wasn't constantly on her mind, that her parents were alright, nobody would notice. No wonder she wasn't upset over breaking up with Ron, she had more important things to worry about.  
"Alright, let's get started, shall we?" McGonagall began. "After the chaos, we've all had to endure over the past few years I believe head girl and head boy will have to bring the school together. I'm pleased to announce head girl will be Miss Hermione Granger, and head boy will be Mr. Harry Potter." The students cheered and Hermione squeezed Harry's hand again.

\---

After the sorting ceremony, the students went to their respective common rooms. Hermione found her new room. It was larger than any of her previous rooms at school, and she had her own bathroom for the first time. She would also be sharing a kitchen and living room with Harry that connected between their two rooms.

Her room looked similar to her previous rooms at school. Red bedding, dark stained wood, gold accents, bold and very Gryffindor. It came as a comfort to Hermione, while she planned on decorating some of the colors and architecture already aligned with her vision. Her room had a queen-sized bed, finally. If she wanted to be head girl for one reason, selfishly, it was the bed. She hated the twin sized beds that she had every year prior. The room also came with a large closet, and a simple wooden desk placed right at a window with a view of the lake. She traced her fingers over the desk admiring the view.Hermione began to unpack her clothing when she he  
ard a knock at her door. She opened up the door to see Ginny.

"You're one room off Ginny." Hermione laughed "Harrys the next door down." And she gestured to her left.

Ginny pushed past Hermione "Actually I'm here for you, Luna should be here any second." She paused and looked towards the door. "You do remember you promised you'd go to the party tonight don't you."Hermione groaned, she had forgotten.

"No, I'm just a bit tired though."

"Please. We're going to have a fun evening. This is your last year, after all, I still have another year." Ginny pushed Hermione towards her bathroom. "Please at least let me do your makeup this year, or pick out your outfit at the very least."

Hermione rolled her eyes again. "fine"

They had made her look ridiculous. At least that's what Hermione thought. Luna hadn't discouraged Ginny from giving Hermione a makeover. All Hermione wanted to spend the evening doing was finishing unpacking, decorating a little, and reading a book by the fireplace in the living room. But it seemed that it wouldn't happen tonight. Instead, she would be dragged along to the party.

Ginny had managed to tame Hermione's curls, maybe the only part of her new look that she could appreciate. She was able to talk Ginny into giving her a natural makeup look but it still was more than Hermione would have put on herself. As she looked in the mirror she decided that she did look rather good, but she wanted to wipe it all off and resume the plans she had for a relaxing evening.

Luna and Ginny both agreed that Hermione couldn't show up in her typical muggle clothing. The other girls were both wearing short dresses, and Hermione knew that like every year, that would be what all the girls were wearing to the party. Luna had a short navy flared dress and Ginny wore a red skater dress that made her hair stand out even more.They moved to her closet and half-full trunk to look through Hermione's dress options. There wasn't much.

"Hermione, this cant be everything you have." Ginny rummaged through Hermione's closet. Luna held up a red dress that she had pulled from Hermione's luggage. "What about this one? I think it would suit you, Hermione."Hermione remained seated at her desk and shrugged.

"Oh no, she cant." Ginny laughed. "This isn't just a Gryffindor party, we can't both show up in red, they already think it's the only color we wear." Ginny turned back to the closet "this is a nice closet 'Mione, there's no way you'll fill it all the way you should let the rest of us use it too."Hermione laughed. "of course, Gin, you can use it. I doubt I'll be able to even fill half of it."  
"ooh, what about this one?" Ginny was examining a short back dress. "This one is so cute Mione, please wear it."

Hermione knew she had no choice and took the dress. She changed into it. It was short and tight, but at least it wasn't too low cut. That was something. Hermione had bought the dress almost two years ago for her cousin's wedding but she was never able to wear it as she spent the year hunting Horcrux with Harry and Ron. The dress had a layer of lace detailing over it full of stars and constellations, that's why she had bought it. Hermione loved the stars and the dress had a subtle glitter to it that reminded her of the night sky.

Ginny grabbed Hermione's arm and pushed her to the mirror. "See" Ginny beamed "I'd say we all look hot. Come on let's go get Harry and Ron, it's already ten, if we wait any longer it's not going to be fashionably late anymore."

***

Hermione had only been to a multi-house party a few times. It seemed like a lot of work and Ginny had been able to drag her to all of the ones thrown by Gryffindor. This year the party was held in the Slytherin common room. Hermione was dreading it, but she was also curious to see what the Slytherin would have done in order to prepare for the party. Gryffindor parties had always been decorated to have a dance floor, plenty of food and drinks but nothing extravagant and Hermione had heard that Slytherin didn't hold back when it came to parties.

The group of Gryffindor's quietly made their way to the dungeons. While they knew the party wouldn't be disturbed by any professors, they had to fend for themselves when it came to getting there without being caught breaking curfew. They followed close behind a group of fifth years until they reached the dungeons. Two fourth-year Slytherin stood by the door guarding it in order to make sure the party would go undisturbed and to let the party-goers in. 

As they stepped through the door Hermione's eyes widened. The room was nothing like she imagined. It was beautiful. If she didn't know any better, Hermione would have never known this was the Slytherin common room let alone the dungeons. The silver and green usually made Hermione uncomfortable but the room around her was breathtaking. The room was dark with what looked like stars under their feet guiding them through the hall and into the main room. While there was food like the Gryffindor parties it looked much more refined, with floating silver trays holding arrays of fruit and strange-looking foods Hermione couldn't place. In a far corner a curtain hung blocking off a section of the room and as the curtain lifted she could make out a sitting area with a fountain in the center. Hermione turned back and saw glass statues of various magical creatures that were charmed to dance. They glittered green with the reflection of the lake above them. Then she saw the tray of drinks float by, nothing like the Gryffindor parties, not a single red solo cup in sight, just goblets and glittering glasses of liquor. She moved to her right and grabbed a glass containing a pale green drink. Hermione took a sip and was pleasantly surprised by the sweet flavor. Apples. Ginny grinned at her.

"See I told you you'd like it, 'Mione." Ginny laughed grabbing a drink for herself before leaving with harry towards the sitting area beyond the curtain. Luna grabbed Hermione's hand and led her towards the dance floor which had been charmed to resemble the milky way, and as they danced a light fog swirled around them with small glittering lights in it. Hermione downed the last of her drink before looking for a place to put it down. Luna laughed and dropped hers on to the ground. Before the glass hit the floor, it transformed into silver glitter, Hermione's eyes widened even more than they had before, and she slowly opened her fingers letting her glass fall to the floor delighted as hers transformed into purple glitter sinking into the floor. Hermione continued to look at the floor, she had never been to a party like this. Growing up in the muggle world and studying as much as she did, meant Hermione missed out on a lot of wizarding parties. Hermione had never seen anything like this, even Fleur and-

before she could finish her thought, Luna had grabbed Hermione's hand and began to take her deeper into the dance floor. They made it near the center and Luna grabbed two more drinks downing hers in a matter of seconds before Hermione even took her first sip.

"come on Hermione, tonight is yours, the dance floor matches your dress." Hermione hadn't even realized but her dress sparkled like the room around them with the same subtlety. That was when she made the conscious choice to let loose. As head girl and with all the classes she would be taking, Hermione knew this would probably be her only opportunity to enjoy herself at a party, with her friends, and in the school, she loved. She gulped down the drink Luna had handed to her already beginning to feel her body warm with the drinks she had consumed. They were strong. She began to dance with Luna losing herself within the dreamy atmosphere of the party. After another drink, Hermione forgot all of her worries completely unaware of the many eyes that were on her as she danced with Luna.

It was a strange sight Hermione Granger dancing, looking happy without her nose in a book. Her hair looked tame for once and her dress fit her nicely... Merlin, he must be really drunk. Draco turned away from the dance floor and made his way to the couches hoping to find Pansy. "Fuck are you kidding me, Potter? Weselette?" He closed his eyes and turned away from the couple. Revolting. Draco prayed that he would never have to see them snogging ever again. He turned back and stood watching the crowd move around the dance floor. Finally, his eyes landed on Pansy and he made his way over to her.

Hermione bumped into somebody and looked up. She blushed, Hermione looked up at the Ravenclaw who was considerably taller than her. He had sandy blonde hair and bright green eyes. She gulped "erm, sorry about that" she turned to continue dancing with Luna but the boy stepped next to her.

"I was actually coming over here, uh would you like to dance Hermione." She stood with a blank expression before looking at Luna who grinned at her and gave her a wink before disappearing into the crowd. Damn her, Hermione made a mental note to tell her to stop meddling in her business. Hermione took his outstretched hand and followed him to another area of the dance floor. She had no other option.

He was clearly drunk, probably more so than Hermione. They danced, and as trays floated over their heads they grabbed more drinks. Hermione was lost after a few more drinks. She silently told herself 'fuck it' she deserved to have a good time with a cute boy for one night. It became a blur, the warmth she felt from her drink, the stars around her feet, the dim light, the people, all of it. Until a slow song came on and she grimaced, the boy noticed.

How was he a Ravenclaw? Somehow, he picked up on the potentially awkward situation. Steady on.

He grasped Hermione's hand and pulled her out of the crowd to the couches which were now empty. He pulled her arm as he settled into the couch and she moved with him falling into his lap straddling his legs. Normally she wouldn't, but this wasn't normally and she did. Hermione kissed him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and bent down. The room was spinning. She was spinning. And Hermione was fairly certain she wouldn't remember this in the morning. He grabbed on to her waist and pulled her closer.

"Do you want to come to my room?" She didn't know where it had come from but she had said it. Damnit. Why did she say it? It had been months since she and Ron broke up and she was beginning to get a bit lonely...but not this lonely. Still, her mind was foggy and she had said it and before she knew it she was dragging the poor boy behind her and he was following behind her like a lost puppy.

They made it past the dance floor, to the door, and into the hallway. They were both drunk and not in their right minds. Walking was proving difficult and Hermione wanted to altogether give up. She paused for a second attempting to compose herself and he grabbed her face. He pushed Hermione against the wall and grabbed the bottom of her chin tilting her face up to his. Hermione kissed him back right away. All rational thought was lost and she was too, in the moment and in the feeling. She kissed him hard, tongues crashing and dancing, she felt his hot breath on her-

"Hermione? HERMIONE?"

Hermione looked up to see Ginny and Harry standing a few feet to the right.

Couple of cock blocks. Bullocks.

"Hermione, who's your friend here? Feeling alright, I can take you to your room and Harry here can take your friend back to his."

"Oh.... No Ginny I think I'm fine here, we were just."

"Come on Hermione, you'd never forgive me if I let you do that." Ginny grabbed her and pulled her away from her friend who was still holding her chin. Ginny dragged Hermione back to her room and had to quite literally put her to bed like a toddler. Ginny shook her head and laughed. Nothing like drunk Hermione, it sobered her up every time.

"goodnight Hermione." Nothing, she shouldn't have wasted her breath Hermione had passed out the moment her body hit the bed. Ginny silently closed the bedroom door and snuck into the room opposite to wait for Harry.

***

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, guys, what do we think so far?
> 
> Thoughts on chapter length?
> 
> There will be SMUT but I'd like for my writing and plot to be actually good. So feel free to let me know if anything seems awkward or cringe because I will fix it.
> 
> Are there any other changes in plot you guys want to see?
> 
> Also, I don't have anybody editing this so there will most likely be errors sorry. x
> 
> Sorry for rambling that should be all. Love yall *


	3. Regression

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A discovery is made, there is dark magic.

***

**Regression**  
re·gres·sion  
 _/rəˈɡreSH(ə)n/_  
 _noun_  
a return to a former or less developed state.   
_"it is easy to blame unrest on economic regression"_

***

Hermione woke with a pounding headache. Fuck. She was hungover. Hermione turned her head to look at Ginny who had just opened all the curtains in her room with a flick of her wand. Hermione rolled over in bed to avoid the light. With another swish of her wand, Ginny pulled the covers off Hermione. Hermione grabbed her own wand and closed the curtains. She sat up and rubbed her eyes. Merlin did her headache.

"Ginny." Hermione started. "How exactly did you get in here?"Ginny laughed and plopped down on the bed beside Hermione.

"Uhhh, well I spent the night with Harry." She gestured towards his room "and you seem to have forgotten to lock your door after we got you to your room last night."

Oh god. How embarrassing. "Ginny... how exactly... how drunk was I last night? I didn't do anything too out of character, did I?" She looked at herself in the mirror and reached up to tough her bruised mouth. "I haven't been snogging anyone, have I?" Hermione looked at Ginny horrified.

Ginny laughed, "Hermione, you were the life of the party nothing to be worried about. It was nice to see you let loose. If you weren't so drunk I would have let you drag that Ravenclaw back to your room with you. But based on the look on your face I think I made the right choice."

"a Ravenclaw? Oh god."

"Well he was fit, don't tell Harry I said that."

Hermione rolled her eyes.

"We had to tear you two apart, but I did tell him to come find you at breakfast. Today's Sunday Hermione, you have time before classes start to pounce on him again although I would guess that maybe a date to Hogsmeade might be more your style."

Hermione smacked Ginny's arm just hard enough to make her scowl right back. " _you_ said I didn't embarrass myself, that is most definitely embarrassing."

Ginny laughed again "Hermione that was nothing compared to my brother or any of the students in your year. Just be glad Harry and I were the only ones sober enough to remember everything." Ginny opened the curtains again, but only halfway this time. "come on let's get breakfast, you're going to miss it and I'm starving" Ginny handed Hermione a goblet of a horrible smelling liquid.

Yuck, it tasted downright awful. But the pain in her head eased and Hermione sat up. Ginny tossed Hermione a pair of jeans and a periwinkle jumper. As soon as she was dressed Ginny dragged Hermione into the living room where Harry sat sleeping on the couch. Ginny smacked the back of his head.

"Harry wake up, I left you alone for five minutes how did you fall asleep?"Harry rubbed his eyes "I was just closing my eyes" He stood up and started walking towards the door. "see I'm wide awake." He opened the door "after you"

Hermione walked out of the room and looked over her shoulder to see Harry and Ginny kiss before walking behind her holding hands. Hermione let out an audible gag making sure they could hear her as they walked towards the dining hall.

Harry grunted before saying "Hermione I could say the same for you, you didn't seem to have an issue with PDA last night"

"Harry, I told you not to say anything." Ginny smacked the back of his head again. Hermione laughed and winced, great her head still hurt a bit, but it was nothing a nice glass of pumpkin juice wouldn't help.

They made their way into the dining room sitting at the Gryffindor table across from Padma, Neville, and Ron. They all looked just as bad as Hermione felt. Thank merlin she wasn't the only one who seemed to have an.... eventful night. Hermione grabbed a large glass of pumpkin juice and chugged it. She was right her head began to feel much better. Hermione glanced at the food in front of her, there was plenty of hangover friendly food. Hermione piled her plate with waffles, fruit, and biscuits with plenty of gravy and dug in. She listened to the conversation around her, it seemed that Neville had knocked over a tray of drinks and Ron was caught with a girl on the couch. At the mention, she looked over at him, his cheeks were stained red and he couldn't look at her. Surprisingly enough, Hermione couldn't care less. She knows how she felt about Ron, and they had agreed to not peruse anything for the time being. If anything, she was more annoyed with his lack of ability in being forthcoming, he couldn't even look at her. Hermione rolled her eyes and turned back to her food.

Hermione barely had a chance to begin to plate seconds before a shadow came into view. She looked up across the table to see an oddly familiar Ravenclaw standing behind Neville. She gulped nope. Hermione knew exactly where she knew this particular Ravenclaw from. Great, she shot Ginny a particularly nasty look before looking back at the boy preparing to let him know she was not interested. He smiled at her and scratched behind his neck obviously nervous. "Hi Hermione I was wondering if I could sit with you, or uhhhh, maybe you'd fancy a walk around the courtyard?" He smiled at her again, Hermione began to smile back at him noticing that Ginny was right and he was actually pretty nice to look at. She gulped, damn drunk Hermione, could she not have picked somebody else so it wasn't so hard for her to focus as she told the boy she wasn't interested.

"Um well actually" Hermione began. But before she could get another word out the doors to the Dining hall flew open. McGonagall stood at the entrance and swiftly made her way over to the Gryffindor table.

"you two" she pointed at Hermione and Harry. "come with me"

Harry and Hermione shared a look before standing and following McGonagall out the doors. Hermione was grateful for the interruption as she was not quite recovered from the night and speaking with this... very handsome Ravenclaw was something Hermione would like to avoid. Harry grabbed Hermione's arm and slowed her a bit so they were just out of McGonagall's earshot.

"you... you don't think she's mad, do you. Did she find out about the party?" Harry looked at Hermione.

Hermione had forgotten. "She didn't sound upset harry more urgent, if she found out and was upset we threw a party she would have found us later Harry. McGonagall probably has something important to tell us maybe a troll found its way into the castle and she wants us to tell the students. We're the heads harry it's our job."

Harry let out a sigh and nodded and they began to pick up the pace again nearly running behind McGonagall who seemed to move with so much speed they could barely keep up at a brisk walk. They made it to her office and she let them in. Great Hermione thought maybe this was about the party. Hermione could take the blame, Harrys had enough problems and he didn't need to be dealing with this.

"professor." Hermione started as McGonagall took her seat. "I'm so, so sorry about last night. It was my idea, okay, the party was just meant to get everyone's spirits up for the new school year and I didn't mean for it to get out of hand..... well I don't think it got out of hand.. you see maybe I did... oh my god is that what this is about are you upset with me? Please professor Harry didn't have anything to do with the party it was all me Ill step down as head girl if ..."

McGonagall shushed Hermione. "No that's not was this is about. In fact, that was more than I wanted to hear. Hermione the party happens every year and I haven't found an issue with it, to be honest, it seemed like a nice way for the students from every house to come together especially after the war."

Hermione's cheeks flushed red, great she should have kept her mouth shut. McGonagall conjured two chairs and motioned for Harry and Hermione to sit. Hermione sat down and looked to her right only just noticing that Draco Malfoy sat in the chair to the right of her. Great, how didn't she notice him before?

"Morning Granger." He smirked, "how's your head feeling?" She scowled at him and looked at McGonagall.

"what's he doing here?" She asked

"I'll have none of that miss Granger you know as well as I do that Draco did his part in helping the order, I will have no ill will in this room."

"yes professor I know but that doesn't mean I...." She trailed off "what exactly are we doing in here professor, why did you come get us in such a hurry?"

Harry was still standing in front of his chair. "Harry please sit, I think you should sit before you hear what I have to say." Harry sat down and looked at McGonagall

"Harry, how's your scar?" McGonagall asked. "has it been hurting?"

Hermione furrowed her brow. "Hurting, why would it hurt? Voldemort is dead"

McGonagall looked at her "please Hermione do not say his name, as we are speaking I have asked the professors to inform the other students to do the same, telling them it's out of respect for those who have lost somebody to the war."

"so, then what's the real reason?" Harry asked

"has your scar been hurting harry?" She asked again

"Yes, it hasn't until yesterday on the train, but it always has, I assumed it was because I was headed back here, to where I last saw Vol- You-Know-Who."

"Has it stopped hurting?" McGonagall looked at him with concern.

"No, it's more.... dull now."

"Hold on." Hermione looked at everyone in the room. "You-Know-Who is dead, we all saw it, Harry defeated him, why would his scar be hurting and what in merlin's name is Malfoy doing here?"

"I was getting to that miss Granger." McGonagall clasped her hands on the desk. "Malfoy came to me this morning. If you will." She gestured towards him and he rolled up his sleeve to reveal where his dark mark used to sit. All of the defected death eater's marks had entirely faded and those who had stayed loyal to the Dark Lord had nasty rashes and pockets of puss over their festering wounds as they slowly healed. Everyone knew this, as the ministry made sure that those who had defected would have a chance to prove themselves to the rest of the wizarding world. But as she looked at Malfoy's arm Hermione didn't see clear skin or a festering wound. She saw a faint dark mark, it was there not as dark as it once was but she could see its outline.

"It appeared when I got on the train" Draco started "It's been burning and it hasn't stopped, whether or not the dark- You-Know-Who is really dead, something is wrong."

"Yes, it appears so Mr. Malfoy." McGonagall looked at the three of them over her glasses. "Mr. Potter I would like to speak to you alone for a moment."

"Whatever you're going to tell me you can say in front of Hermione and Malfoy professor."She raised an eyebrow at him "I'm aware that you and miss Granger don't keep secrets from each other, but I would like to speak to you alone." She glanced at the fireplace and Harry and Malfoy were none the wiser but Hermione noticed.

"it's fine Harry I'll wait for you outside." She looked at Harry with what he hoped looked like reassurance but she felt uneasy and couldn't hide it completely.

"Miss Granger, Mr. Malfoy, please do wait outside, I'll need to speak to you again." She motioned towards the door and they both stood up slowly and made their way out of the room.

Hermione's eyes didn't leave the fireplace and she could have sworn she saw somebody step through the fireplace as she closed the door. She sat down by the right side of the door, the cold stone sending a shiver up her spine. Hermione glanced over at Malfoy who stood on the other side of the door pacing.

They didn't speak for a few moments and Hermione did her best to listen to whatever was being said on the other side of the door but McGonagall knew better and her office was charmed so anything she could hear was muffled. But she knew that she now heard another voice. "Malfoy stop pacing I'm trying to listen." She glared at him. He folded his arms and stood still.

"you're not going to be able to hear anything."

"yes, I know but I saw the fireplace light as we left, somebody flooed in. I know it sounds crazy but even if we can't hear what they're saying there's another voice."

Draco furrowed his brow and sat down trying to listen as well. "How? Nobody is permitted to floo until the last of the death eaters have been found."

"I don't know but listen, you hear that right?"

He listened again, she was right there was another voice and it was male. "Yes, there's somebody else."

Hermione began to listen again. She could swear she heard that voice before, even if it wasn't clear there was something oddly familiar about it. They sat in silence listening for what seemed like forever before Draco broke the silence this time.

"Can I ask you something?"

She looked at him and rose an eyebrow. "I guess, there's no telling how long we're going to be left waiting out here." Hermione motioned for him to continue.

Draco took a breath. "Why exactly..." he took another breath and composed himself so his signature stoic expression wouldn't falter. "why did you testify for my mother?"He looked at her with questioning eyes. Even his calm demeanor couldn't help but hide the look in his eyes.

"oh-." Hermione sighed "we knew she defected and without her, Harry would be dead and we would have lost. After McGonagall told us about everything she did in order to aid Snape and the order I couldn't just.... I thought I owed her. Harry is everything to me and I don't know what I would do without him." At the mention of his old professor's name Draco winced.  
Hermione cleared her throat "I thought you were going to ask why I didn't testify for you."

Draco chuckled "why could you testify for me Granger, I was nothing but horrible to you during school, and it's no secret that while I defected and believe that muggle-borns shouldn't be killed, I still believe in pureblood supremacy. Anyways McGonagall and plenty of other professors did as well, I was fine."

Hermione looked at him for a moment longer before looking in front of her again. They sat in silence again doing her best to listen to the voices beyond the door. Hermione knew that voice she was sure of it, she just couldn't place it. It was oddly familiar but the charm on McGonagall's door distorted it just enough that she couldn't be sure.

***

Harry remained in the seat across from McGonagall as Kingsley Shacklebolt stood behind her. He has flooed in moments after Hermione and Draco had left the room. He hung up his coat and turned towards them.

"Harry, I had hoped the next time I saw you it would be under a happier pretense, but that's not the case. I'm assuming McGonagall has filled you in to some extent, but I'll make sure we're all on the same page. Something is off-kilter. There was no sign of him, and let me make sure we're all clear on not speaking his name. Not until we know there isn't anything left of him. Not a wisp. But until then we must tread lightly. It seems as though there is something still out there. He-who-must-not-be-named, is dead but we have seen him come back from beyond the grave before." Kingsley paused and tapped his forehead. "but I'm sure you can feel it, Harry. I had a feeling, last week the sword of Gryffindor began to glow. We should all be grateful that it was in my office and I was alone at the time. We do not, we cannot have mass panic. Harry let me ask you something. Do you think you're the most qualified person in figuring out what has happened? Because I believe so, you had a connection with him before you defeated him and I wouldn't be surprised if there is anything left of him, you would be connected still."Harry was seated with his chin in his hand. He rubbed his temples and adjusted his glasses taking in a breath of air.

"I suppose, but I'm not the only one who knows a lot about him. I wasn't alone when I was hunting for Horcruxes. I mean I did have a connection with him, but I-"

Kingsley cut him off "Yes, I agree Harry, your friends understand a great deal about him, and they were instrumental in his defeat, but we both know that's not what I mean. You could sense him, you were able to see into his mind and understand him, is that correct?"

"yes, but-"

Kingsley continued "and have you sensed him, heard from him since the battle?"

"no," Harry fidgeted in his seat "it's been, well nothing, radio silence."

Kingsley nodded his head "Yes that's what I would have guessed. But if anyone is going to hear anything you will be the first. If anyone is going to sense anything you will be the first. That's why I would like to offer you a position as an Auror. Immediately. I understand that you would like to continue your studies here with your friends, but you are the only one who can help us." Harry looked at him stunned. It didn't feel like a question, more of an invitation that he wouldn't be able to back out of.

McGonagall turned towards Harry. "Kingsley and I have already discussed this and I am fine with it if you choose to begin your training. I would also like to mention that there will be room for you to continue your studies. We can arrange for you to spend two weeks training and then the following two weeks back at school. While you're away we can send you schoolwork and I'm sure your friends will be able to send you their notes."

Harry couldn't say no. Could he? He was already planning on perusing a career as an auror, and they needed his help. As much as he loved his friends, Voldemort had already consumed so much of his life that it would feel like going back to normal. A perverted and nasty sense of normal, but normalcy non-the-less.

"Alright." Harry looked between the two of them. "When would I begin?"

Kingsley was elated, his somber expression changed and there was a twinkle in his eyes. He would never admit it but he had developed a fondness for Harry and seeing him through his training would be an honor. "Wonderful, I'll send the paperwork through tonight and we can begin next week. I don't see why we should delay this, I don't think we can." Kingsley moved towards the side of the desk and shook Harry's hand. "You'll be hearing from me soon, and if you need anything, please owl me." And with that, he grabbed his coat and left through the fireplace.

***

The door cracked open and Hermione and Draco turned to see McGonagall. She ushered them back inside her office and they took their seats. Harry was silent seemingly looking at McGonagall for some sort of reassurance.

McGonagall shuffled around her desk pulling out parchment. "Kingsley was just here."

***

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry to end it there but I think it was getting a bit long so I split it in half. If not lmk and I will make the chapter longer to end in a better place.
> 
> Other than that lmk what you think so far. I think that's all. XX


	4. Dissimulation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harry will have to leave the school for his duties, Hermione isn't pleased with the new choice for head boy. Then again neither is Draco.

***

**Dissimulation**  
dis·sim·u·la·tion  
 _/dəˌsimyəˈlāSH(ə)n/_  
 _noun_  
concealment of one's thoughts, feelings, or character; pretense.  
 _"an attempt at dissimulation"_

***

Hermione was dumbfounded. She had been sent out of McGonagall's office so Harry could speak to Kinsley, seriously? Hermione had not only met Kingsley but she had worked with him in the order and considered him to be somebody she could trust, one of her many mentors. Hermione couldn't see a reason she wouldn't be included in a meeting with him.

"Kingsley was here..." Hermione paused "and I had to leave the room" she scoffed and folded her arms.

McGonagall looked over at Harry before speaking again. "Yes, Kingsley had important information he wanted to discuss with Harry without any interruption."

"I beg your pardon I-"

"let me finish, I intend on filling you in Miss Granger. Kingsley was here to discuss what we have all noticed. He has also become aware of an energy that is still here. He agrees that it doesn't seem to be dark magic but rather a presence. The same one Harry and Draco have felt. Kingsley has contacted many of the members of the order to create a task force to investigate it but their knowledge isn't enough. He has asked Harry to begin his Auror training a year early to aid in the investigation. Harry will be leaving at the end of the week to begin, Kingsley believes Harry is the only one with enough knowledge of you-know-who to find anything."

Rage couldn't even begin to describe what she was feeling. McGonagall was one of the people Hermione trusted the most in the world. "You cannot be serious, Minerva you had me leave the room so Kingsley could talk Harry into leaving. If I was in here I would have told him not to. And I'm going to tell him now. Harry has been subjected to harbouring the responsibility of the war and you-know-who his entire life. This is the first year Harry has a chance to be a normal student, don't you think he deserves that? Not everything should be his responsibility you cannot force this on him. We were children forced to fight. We were children fighting in a war, a war that hasn't even been over for a year and you expect Harry to just drop everything and go back? You were right I'm not okay with this."

McGonagall began to stand up, "Miss Granger I'm sorry but this is-

"No, it's okay." Harry placed his hands on Hermione's shoulder. "I agreed to it, and I'm still going to be learning. Kingsley and I agreed that I'll alternate between learning and training so I'll be back here every other week. Hermione, it's okay. This is important to me, I need to make sure everything is fine. I can't sit here, doing nothing knowing that something might be out there. I won't be able to deal with the thought that after everything I've done, you-know-who to still be out there in some way. You know me, I'm a Gryffindor." He smiled down at her. Hermione did know him, Harry was selfless and brave and she was sure that he was sincere, but still, he deserved a chance to just be a boy even if it was only for a year. Harry had agreed to go with Kingsley and Hermione knew that Harry probably wanted to but it wasn't fair. Still, Hermione was sent out of McGonagall's office so the conversation wouldn't involve her and she wouldn't have the chance to stand up for her friend and his well being. It was fucked. Everything was fucked, they fought in a war as children, they saw their friends die, they didn't get a chance.  
Like everything else in her life, Hermione was put in situations without a choice and so were her friends. She was forced into fighting in a war, forced to hide, run, and survive and she was done. Hermione deserved a moment of peace and her friends do too. Harry needed a chance and he wasn't going to get it, a chance to make his own choices and live the way he wanted. Even if he wanted to be an Auror he wasn't supposed to start his training until the following year. This year was supposed to be their chance to relax and learn. No this was their year to recover they just fought in a war months before, they had seen death and violence all around them. Hermione knew she was still affected and her friends probably were too. It wasn't right, and it was her fault she needed to fight for Harry harder so he could see that he deserved to stay at school, but it seemed like he had already made up his mind.

Harry squeezed her hand again pulling Hermione out of her thoughts. "It's okay, alright?" Hermione looked at him, "I'm so sorry Harry, you deserve better."

"Hermione, it's okay. Yah?" Harry looked at her searching her eyes for an answer.   
Hermione felt defeated, she knew there was nothing else she could do. Harry had made up his mind, and once he had there was usually no changing it. His stubborn nature was both one of his best and worst traits. It was what had allowed them to survive from the troll to Voldemort.   
That was it, she was powerless in this situation. "Fine"

"Wonderful Miss Granger, there's more that needs to be discussed. With Harry being gone and the possible presence, we need to be careful. The school needs a unified front and we cant have students fighting at this time. House rivalries are one thing but we need to make sure it won't go too far. First Harry won't be able to fulfil his duties as a head boy along with his Auror training and keeping up with his studies. We need to select a new head boy, I was going to suggest Mr. Longbottom however it seems as though having students from different houses could help to keep the peace, so Mr Malfoy you will be head boy."

"What" she couldn't be serious Hermione was not about to spend the year dealing with him instead of Harry. She hadn't even been at school for a week and it was all going to shit, merlin it really couldn't get any worse.

Draco cleared his throat. "No, I'm okay thanks, headmistress."

"Mr Malfoy I don't think you heard me correctly. I didn't ask you, you will be head boy. I'm hoping that having you as head boy will lead to some peace among the houses. While it seems many of the students want to move past the war and get along with each other others seem stuck and are harbouring grudges. I expect you to take your responsibilities seriously beginning tonight."

***

It had taken a lot of convincing on both Hermione and Draco’s ends but McGonagall was unwavering. They had argued for over an hour Draco with McGonagall, Hermione with McGonagall, Draco with Hermione and Harry did his best to convince them. When it became clear that Harry and McGonagall weren't going to change their minds they finally agreed. Hermione didn't agree because she wanted to, but she was tired of fighting. Hermione wanted to go back to her dorm, in the days she had been back at school, she had yet to have a moment to herself and Hermione just wanted to be alone. She needed a moment, so much had happened over the past few months and Hermione hadn't begun to process any of it, the pain of losing so much, her friends, parts of herself and maybe even her family. Draco was the only one in the room who seemed to agree with her, she was shocked, Hermione never saw herself agreeing with him but she did. He couldn't be head boy, and she didn't understand why McGonagall would ever want him to be head boy. Sure they needed a head boy that she could work with to bring the school together but there were plenty of other candidates from houses other than Gryffindor, Hermione could think of a few in Slytherin.

Seconds after Hermione and Draco had begrudgingly agreed, McGonagall started to speak again. It took Hermione a moment in her disbelief to realize that McGonagall was talking, and it took her another moment to catch on to what was being said.

"to make sure everyone understands. Think of it as a presentation of unity. The three of you will need to make sure to work together." WORK TOGETHER, McGonagall was out of her mind, this kept getting worse and worse. "there are a few points that will need to be emphasized to the students of course. Many are still recovering and the three of you will need to make sure to be sensitive. First I will speak to the students, I will make sure to explain the situation so you will be received well. One moment let me write this down so you don't forget." McGonagall pulled parchment and a quill waving her wand so it would transcribe for her. "Your peers have already been informed but you must reiterate that there will be no mention of you-know-who's name, this will be presented as a precaution. What hasn't been said, and I will leave to the three of you is that house points will be deducted when his name is mentioned, students will be allowed a grace period of a week as this is quite sudden but points will begin to be deducted next week. Second, in an effort to bring students together, we are now going to allow students to sit at any table each day during lunch and dinner on Fridays. I'm sure some of you have friends in other houses and this will give everyone a chance to heal together and for other students to see that houses cannot divide them. Lastly, as we do not know the nature of the situation, and if it is safe for muggle-born students outside of the school we will be requiring a pass to leave which includes Hogsmeade. We do not need to scare students so this will come as a new policy and most requests will be approved. Now if that should be all and the three of you are free to leave, however, I expect you to be prepared to share this information with the school at dinner."

Hermione stood op and grabbed her bag, quickly speaking "Thank you headmistress." and moving towards the door. By the time she made it into the hall, Harry had her cornered and was speaking to Hermione and Draco. "Alright, I'm sure we all have a lot to do before class starts tomorrow so how about we just split this up so we can leave?" Hermione nodded and Draco just stood there looking at Harry. "Okay well I can handle the first issue of not saying you-know-who's name, then Malfoy, you can handle houses sitting together and Hermione you can talk about passes. I think we should end it on a good note so Malfoy you can go last. Does that work?"

Hermione clutched her bag to her side, "Yes Harry, that sounds fine."

Harry smiled "Okay good and-" Hermione was already halfway down the hall heading towards the stairs. She was livid but Harry didn't need to know that and she just wanted to go back to her room and figure everything out, on her own.

Harry glanced over his shoulder and turned back to make sure Draco was on the same page, but he was also walking away in the opposite direction. Harry grumbled, "'Yes Harry, sounds wonderful, good luck with your training that's very exciting,' Why thank you, Hermione, I'm excited too! And Malfoy this works for you too? ' Yes Potter' 'Wow great thank you both'"

***

As soon as Hermione got back to her room she put her things down, set an alarm for thirty minutes before dinner- just enough time to freshen up and get there early and then she fell asleep. When she woke up she felt horrible. Maybe it was the stress or maybe she was just sick but Hermione had a bad feeling. Hermione didn't want to have to speak in front of the other students, McGonagall could have handled it on her own. It wasn't difficult, public speaking, but having to speak to the students and look over the great hall and being able to see all of the spots where her friends should have been that had died in the war was difficult. Hermione could already imagine looking over at each of the tables and seeing gaps between students where their friends used to eat and laugh with them.

Hermione went to the bathroom and uses her wand to tame her hair, she washed her face and went to the great hall. When she got there McGonagall was talking to Harry while Draco stood a few feet away from them leaning against the wall.

"Oh Hermione, you're here I was starting to worry you weren't coming. Alright, lets quickly go over what we're going to say." Harry smiled as McGonagall started walking toward the front of the room. Hermione followed them and they sat at the end of the Gryffindor table. McGonagall told them to go ahead and she would just listen. Harry began but Hermione wasn't really listening. She was just waiting for Harry to stop talking and then she would begin, she hadn't practised but Hermione didn't need to. Words were one of the things that came easily to Hermione, she already knew what she needed to say when to emphasize a word, where a pause was needed, a laugh, a smile. Yes, it was easy. And when Harry stopped talking she counted to ten and began. It was like the words fell out of her and she was somebody else just listening. She wasn't the one who was actually talking, her lips were moving and the words that came out of them made sense but it was just happening. Like her body was on autopilot completing the task for her. Hermione finished speaking and Draco began and she turned him out too. Hermione didn't need to listen she just needed to get through the day, then the week and maybe even the month so she could figure everything out.

"Wonderful, that was exactly what I needed each of you to say, and it works out quite nicely. Well let's plan on sitting for dinner, as usual, I will have Professor Trelawney announce that everyone needs to stay until the end and I will see you all then. I have met in a few minutes that I have to get to, enjoy your meals." McGonagall stood up and left, leaving the three of them alone in the Great Hall. It was nearly five and the rest of the students would begin to show up for dinner any moment.

Hermione stood up and headed back to the other end of the table to her usual spot, Harry was right on her heels talking the whole way. She sat down and he continued to blab on and on about who knows what. Hermione couldn't care less, "Quidditch" something something something "so excited to start my training" something something something, "Ginny" and he just kept going. Hermione's mind was elsewhere, not having Harry at school would be like losing a part of herself. He was always there when she needed him, Harry was the best support system she had, sure Ron had been there for her as well but not in the same capacity. Ron didn't get it usually, he never seemed to grasp the complex part of the issue at hand and most if not all of Hermione's problems were complicated. Without Harry, she could probably talk to Ginny, or Luna or even Neville but it still wouldn't be the same. But that was all fine, it wasn't like Harry was leaving for good, it was just every other week. Still, even though Harry would be back every other week Hermione knew better. When Harry dedicated himself to something it was all he could think or talk about, and this was something important to Harry and maybe even to the rest of the wizarding world, but that had yet to be determined. Hermione could see it now, she would come to Harry about the issue with her parents and he would look at it as something so simple. He would chalk it up as a mistake, maybe the healers didn't help enough, the memories would come back, and they were Hermione's real parents. She knew better though, Hermione knew better, she had a gut of steel and when she got a feeling about something she went with it. Hermione had yet to ignore her intuition and it never let her down.

Hermione examined the room, it was so odd. It had been a battleground months earlier, home to the second rise of Voldemort. It had been infected with dark magic and hate, the walls were nothing but rubble. But now, it was back to normal, the walls were rebuilt, not a dent in sight nothing was out of place. Everything looked as it had before the war.  
Hermione felt something move to the left of her. Ginny had sat down next to Hermione across from Harry. Ginny started to plate her food, Hermione hadn't even realized that the food had appeared. Harry looked over at her and smiled. "Oh Hi Ginny, we were just talking about-

"What was that about earlier?" Ginny was sitting with her arms clasped in front of her learning in towards Hermione and Harry.   
"Why did you to have to leave in such a hurry?" Hermione started to fidget nervously with the hem of her skirt.

Harry seemed to notice Hermione's nerves "Oh nothing Ginny don't worry about it, just a formality, I'll tell you about it later, just not here."

Ginny raised her eyebrows, "Okay later then." She didn't seem entirely satisfied with the answer but seemed to move on. Hermione began to plate her own food, content on keeping herself distracted from the conversation and her own thoughts. Hermione stared at the plate in front of her, she could sware she was hungry a moment ago but her appetite was long gone. Her mind was getting the best of her so Hermione decided that listening to everyone around her speaking. Ginny and Harry were speaking about quidditch, Neville was speaking to Seamus about his summer and Hermione found herself being quite annoyed with everyone around her. Hermione continued to pick at her food counting the minutes until McGonagall returned so she could get their little announcement over with an leave.

Trelawney made the announcement ten minutes into dinner telling the students to stay for an announcement at the end of the evening. By six-thirty, most of the students were done with their meals. Hermione was over moving the food around on her plate and her stomach was in knots. Her hands were clammy and she couldn't help the constant shaking that her leg was doing.

"Hermione?" She couldn't help but think about her parents, and "Hermione!" She looked over at Ginny "Hmm?"

Ginny placed her hand on Hermione's arm, "Are you okay? You've been shaking your leg and biting your nails."

Hermione held her leg still, "I'm fine McGonagall is having Harry and I make part of the announcement and I would just like to leave so I can get an early nights sleep before classes start."  
Ginny laughed. "Oh Hermione, always worried about your classes." The witch patted Hermione's arm again. Hermione gave her a small smile, glad that her little white lie had been believable. In past years it would have been true, even with Voldemort in the picture all Hermione wanted to do was learn. Now though, she was preoccupied with her own issues.

At six forty-five McGonagall finally made her appearance. As she walked in McGonagall glanced at Harry, then Hermione and finally Draco, a silent signal for them to join her at the front of the Great Hall. Hermione got up immediately eager to get it over with, but as soon as she got to the front of the room her heart sunk. She had been avoiding looking around the room, and Hermione was right. There were empty spots all over the room, spots that used to have somebody sitting in them, spots that were previously occupied by students that were.... gone, to say the least. Her stomach churned and she knotted her fingers in front of her picking at the skin. Harry stood between Hermione and McGonagall with a smile on his face and Draco made slowly made his way to the other side of McGonagall. The Great Hall was now silent. No doubt students were whispering among themselves wondering what all three of them were doing with McGonagall. Hermione was sure Draco was apprehensive to join them due to the reputation he now had. She glanced over at McGonagall again hoping that whatever she said worked, Hermione just didn't have it in her to deal with being head girl essentially by herself if the other students continued to ostracize Draco.

"Hello, I hope you have all had a good evening. I had not planned on speaking to you again so soon. First, we have congratulations in order for Mr Potter. He has been accepted a year early into an Auror training program." McGonagall paused as the room erupted into applause. Every Gryffindor had risen to their feet cheering for Harry none looked more happy than Ginny. As the cheers began to die out McGonagall continued. "Mr Potter is going to finish his studies her simultaneously however he will be unable to fulfil his duties as head boy. In his place, Mr Malfoy will be head boy." The room was nearly silent, the shock was immediate and many students were whispering. Even the Slytherin table didn't seem impressed. The juxtaposition of the cheers moments earlier with the silence that was now taking place was clear. Draco wasn't receiving a warm welcome by any means. McGonagall paused and spoke again "Mr Potter will be here for the remainder of the week, and he will continue to his job as head boy working along with Mr Malfoy and Miss Granger. I hope that seeing the three of them working together will help the rest of you as I am aware there is animosity between many students but I won't have that this year. Mr Potter if you will."

Harry stepped forward and began. Hermione looked at all the students, the empty seats, she just couldn't look away. As she waited for Harry to stop taking she began to count the empty seats. Too many to count, there were too many. She had counted to fifteen only halfway through the Gryffindor table and she had to start over again. Hermione counted to twenty-three fourths of the way through the Gryffindor table. Harry stopped talking and she almost missed it. Hermione squeezed her hands in fists, her knuckles going white. She closed her eyes and allowed her mind to do the work for her. It was automatic like before, Hermione's mouth was moving and it was what she needed to say. It sounded good, she listened to herself, it was convincing. Not just the words towards the students convincing them that they should comply by asking for a pass, but that she was herself. She was doing it, being Hermione Granger, the golden girl, and it was damn convincing. Then she was done, Hermione began counting again making it to forty-six in the middle of the Hufflepuff table before Draco finished his own speech.

McGonagall stepped forward "Well that should be everything if anyone has any questions please do come see me after, you are all free to leave. Have a wonderful first week of classes." That was the ticket, as soon as Hermione saw a few students get up to leave she followed. Finally, she would have a chance to get back to her dorm and prepare for the week ahead.

***

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, this chapter took forever, its kinda boring I know, but it needed to happen for the story to move.
> 
> If you have any notes etc like always please let me know. Sorry, it's been slow moving but the next chapter will have a lot more going on, not to have any spoilers but Draco is moving in.
> 
> That's all, see you in a few days I'm excited about what's to come ;)


	5. Rue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Retuning to school was harder than she thought it would be. Hermione makes an unexpected acquaintance

Trigger warning slight Ron slander. Not too much, and there won't be a ton in this fic but there will be a little. lol sorry.

***

**Rue**   
rue1  
 _/ro͞o/_   
_noun_  
ARCHAIC repentance; regret.  
 _"with rue my heart is laden"_

***

On Monday Hermione woke with a start, not unlike most years as school began at Hogwarts. Usually, Hermione woke up because she had a nightmare about running behind and arriving late to her first class. This year she had jolted up in bed sweaty and shaking as she had just relived one of the worse days of her life. Just a few moments earlier Hermione's mind had taken her back to the Malfoy manor and Bellatrix's hot breath had been on Hermione's neck as she carved into her arm. Hermione threw the covers off of her and cast a cooling charm on her arm, but it wasn't enough. Wasn’t tangible enough.

Hermione got up and went to her bathroom turning on the sink and running cold water over her arm. Even with Bellatrix dead and the scar fading, Hermione could have sworn her arm still throbbed from time to time. Her arm shook and she shuddered as the cold water soothed the phantom pains. Hermione went back into her dorm and checked the clock on her bedside table. It was already seven and she had planned on waking up in half an hour so she began to get ready for her day.

Hermione managed to get through all of her classes just fine. While she previously loved to immerse herself in learning solely for her knowledge, now it provided a welcome distraction. Hermione's classes were a breeze, she was able to throw herself back into her studies, and her mind was able to forget about her parents, the war, Harry's inevitable departure, the possibility of a dark presence and not to mention having to deal with Draco. By the time dinner came Hermione was spent, she wasn't really in the mood to socialize, never the less she knew she would need to keep up appearances for the time being in order for her plan later in the week to pan out. Hermione made her way to dinner and sat next to Ginny who was in the middle of a rather animated discussion with Neville. Whatever they were talking about had something to do with where they would be sitting during lunch the following day and it couldn't sound less interesting to Hermione. She had genuinely forgotten about the announcement in which students could mingle with other houses during lunchtime, but she joined in the conversation in order to make it known that she had made it to dinner. Neville wanted to sit at the Hufflepuff table and Ginny was instant-on inviting Hannah and Luna to sit at the Gryffindor table. Hermione chimed in to agree with Ginny, only to save herself from having to spend time with Hufflepuff who was even more cheery than Gryffindors which irritated her to no end. Had everyone already gotten over the war? Everyone other than her? Hermione also couldn't risk having her friends becoming comfortable sitting with other tables, they would end up at the Ravenclaw table sooner or later and she had successfully avoided the Ravenclaw boy or "Mr Tall and Handsome" as Ginny had called him all day. She would much rather have him sit at the Gryffindor table where Hermione had friends that she could task with entertaining him, in order to get him off her back.

After thirty minutes, Hermione felt that it had been long enough and said her goodbyes telling her friends she would be heading to the library in order to get ahead on her classes. It wasn't an outright lie per se but it wasn't the entire truth either. Hermione made her way to the library and didn't waste a second, she was taking advanced muggle studies and being in the section wouldn't raise anyone suspicions. Hermione thumbed through various titles before grabbing a book about the muggle legal system, and two other books on muggle transportation just in case anyone happened to be interested in what she was reading. Hermione took a seat in one of the back corners of the library and cracked her book open. She glanced through the textbook finding a section on muggle adoption. As much as she wanted to doubt herself she was the brightest with of her age for a reason and the spell she had used on her mother made it pretty clear. Hermione wasn't sure what it meant for her, maybe her parents had used other methods to conceive her but she wasn't really sure what those were. As she began to attend Hogwarts before she needed "the talk" the only one she had ever received was the magical one. It stood to reason that her parents went about having her in a different manner and their memories of her conception and arrival were just among some of the many that were still being recovered. So Hermione began to read about muggle adoption, she knew some information already and didn't want to burden herself with learning about other ways she may have come about until later in the week when she had more time to herself.

The book was factual and not exactly what she needed. It outlined the legal proceedings for a muggle adoption and it didn't delve into the personal parts of the process. It began with different types of adoption from familial to stranger but it wasn't quite what she needed. Before she could find another book to learn more about the subject, Madam Pince announced to the library- Hermione and two fifth-year Ravenclaws who were gossiping more than studying- that the library would be closing soon. It wouldn't be enough time for selecting a book and checking it out, and Hermione wasn't to keen on leaving a paper trail on what exactly it was she was reading, so she headed back to her dorm. She entered her room and immediately regretted her decision. Madam Pince didn't exactly love Hermione but she let her stay past closing often just so she didn't have to deal with the witch practically begging for more time. Hermione was able to manage this not even halfway through her first year and she was proud of her control over the library. The moment she opened the door to the head common room she was assaulted with sounds of Ginny and Harry shagging. Hermione scrambled over to her room and flung a silencing spell at her door. She knew she couldn't hear anything anymore but the sounds played over and over in her mind and she slammed a pillow over her had. Gross.

Hermione busied herself with actually getting ahead on her studies. Unfortunately, it didn't take long, and from living at the burrow during the trials at the beginning of the summer she knew that Ginny and Harry were more likely than not, still going at it. So she begrudgingly set out to get ready for bed. She took her sweet time getting into her pajamas, made her beg- not that it needed it- fluffed her pillows, busied herself with stacking her papers and packing her bag for the next day before braving it and running across the hall to the shared bathroom. Yes, they were most definitely still shagging. Hermione sent another silencing spell at the bathroom door and let out a breath. She then took the fastest shower of her life, used magic to clean her teeth rather than going about it the muggle way, before sprinting back to her room to safety. Hermione tucked herself in bed but for the life of her she couldn't fall asleep, there was too much to think about. It had been an hour or maybe it just felt like it, in reality, it could have been ten minutes, but the silence and her thoughts kept her awake. Hermione caved and took a dreamless sleep potion.

***

Grateful didn't even begin to describe how Hermione felt towards the potion she had taken the night before. She hadn't been visited during the night by any unwelcome memories. Hermione made sure to mark her calendar with an x before she left, Hermione needed to make sure she didn't take the potion too often. Over the summer she had come dangerously close to developing a dependency on dreamless sleep in order to escape night terrors. Much of her day followed the previous. Classes that served as a break for her racing mind and a lunch full of conversations that irritated Hermione. McGonagall had taken the initiative to ask the schools elves to change the banners in the great hall, which were usually in the house colour of the table below, to the school crest. Few students had taken advantage of the encouraged inter-house mingling the day before, and it seemed as though the headmistress was eager to get on with the post-war "unity." Whether it was something the witch would have encouraged without the threat of a dark presence or not Hermione could have done without it. The conversation was evermore cheery at lunch, as Hannah Abbot who Hermione didn't care for, and Luna Lovegood a girl Hermione did actually like, had joined them for the meal. Hermione made sure to seem engaged in the conversation, she didn't really understand how her friends were able to carry on as nothing had happened, but she didn't need them to worry about her. If they were able to overcome everything that had happened, as much as she was perplexed, Hermione wanted that for them. By the end of the meal, Hermione's head was throbbing with a migraine and she never wanted to hear the word "awesome" again, if she did, Hermione would most likely hex Abbot with just about any curse that came to mind.

The migraine persisted through most of her classes but finally subsided after a few hours. Hermione didn't think she would be able to handle dinner with any of her friends even without the addition of a Hufflepuff. So she opted to eat dinner in the head dorms, sat with Crookshanks on her lap by fire. As soon as she was sure that her migraine had actually left and had no chance of returning, Hermione grabbed her things and headed to the library. She considered herself grateful that her room was so close to the librar- Damit. Hermione slipped into an alcove barely missing Ginny and Harry returning from dinner. She counted to ten and walked back out picking up a brisk pace as to make it to the library without seeing anyone else. The one thing she absolutely did not need was anyone trying to socialize with her in the library. This was it, her few hours of the day that she could devote to herself. Albeit not what she thought she would be spending her free time doing in her final year at Hogwarts. No, she would much rather be spending her time studying, enjoying her classes and feeding her mind, socializing with her friends without wanting to hex every last one of them. She really did love her friends but spending time with them was too much. They went on acting like everything was normal, life had resumed for them. They too carried the burdens of the war, just not in the same ways Hermione did and she wasn't sure how to interact with them anymore. They had been together over the summer and had a chance to grieve and heal together. It felt as though Hermione was excluded from their little group and she was on her own. The mourning wasn't over for her yet. Her friends had moved on and she couldn't. They still struggled but it was together, and they could lean on each other. Her friends shared the same burdens Hermione had, but she couldn't lean on them the same way. They only had the same burdens and Hermione had more that she couldn't reconcile with, couldn't talk to them about, because she couldn't begin to grasp them or understand them in the slightest. They had all lost things in the war but Hermione was still losing, she had her parents just within her grasp, but they were all too close and too far.

Hermione's summer was spent with parents that couldn't remember and still hadn't at least not all the way. And the more they began to remember the more it felt like they went from not seeing her as their daughter because they didn't know her, to not being able to recognize who she had become. When she had left home to return to school, she had never felt so incomplete. Her parents remembered her and did their best to treat her like they had used to but they could be mid-conversation and Hermione would mention something that went in one ear and out the other. It was painful, to say the least, but when her mother mentioned wanting to have children again, even if it may have been due to having her memories recovered to when Hermione was an infant for about a week, it was refreshing. Hermione felt as though it was one of the first things she was honestly able to communicate with her mother over. It was the one topic that her mother didn't have to pause and think about when they conversed, her mother was never sitting there with a vacant expression on her face when the wrong thing was said.

Hermione made it to the same section of the library grabbing two texts that looked promising. Muggle Family Structures and the Intimate Muggle Legal Standings. Hoping that these were what she needed Hermione grabbed her usual table and began setting her materials up. She used a disillusionment charm on the books in an effort to make it look like she was studying ancient runes, a perfect repellent for anyone who wanted to talk to her. Before she got to reading she drafted a quick note to the healers that were still working with her parents that she would drop off at the owlery before heading back to her dorm. Hermione reached over to her books selecting the smaller of the two and merlin that was the wrong choice. For such a small book it was maybe the densest information she had come across. Being muggle-born usually meant she had an upper hand in muggle studies, but the muggle legal system was something else entirely. In an hour she barely made a dent in the tiny text having to reread sections more than once, Hermione let out a sigh and closed the book. Hermione opened the second book and began to read. It was an easier read, but it was a large book with more information than she could retain in one sitting. Maybe if she could just ask Madam Pince and remind the woman that she had taken part in defeating Voldemort she would be able to stay in the library after it closed. If she was able to finish the books and get a grasp on muggle adoption, then she could move on to researching other methods muggles used to have children.

Hermione was three scrolls into her notes and quite focused, so much that she failed to notice the read head approaching her. One moment she was dipping her quill back into an ink-pot, the next Ron was pulling the chair out next to her. He leaned over and looked at her book, and she made sure to move her left arm in front of her notes.

"Ancient Runes, really 'Mione, we missed you at dinner so you could work on this?"

"Yes Ron, I wanted to get my assignment done early." Hermione rolled her eyes and slid a new piece of parchment over her scribbles not wanting him to see the real nature of her research.

"Well, you were missed. I haven't seen you all week" He put his hand on her right arm and batted his eyes at her. Internally Hermione was rolling her eyes, she hadn't seen Ron all week as he was preoccupied with a Hufflepuff Hermione couldn't name for the life of her. Being a war hero seemed to do wonders for his social endeavors. As mad as Hermione could be or should be, she just wasn't. Ron could do whatever or whoever he wanted for all she cared she honestly couldn't be bothered. However, at this moment, Ron seemed to be acting as if he was still with Hermione. And that was just not the case. When Hermione had skipped dinner it was to avoid conversations that she had to pretend that she didn't want to roll her eyes at and this would definitely be one of those. At least at dinner, Ron had sat a few students over and she had been able to get around talking to him in front of others about whatever this was. Another internal eye roll at that thought. She had spoken to him at meals about plenty of things, non of any substance and none that actually interested her. This, however, was a conversation she was hoping to either avoid entirely or delay. She wasn't avoiding him per se... well okay. Yes, maybe she was avoiding Ron. In the time they had spent apart and had gone back to being friends, not that they had been more than friends for that long either, Hermione had pretty much made up her mind. More she had come to a realization. Hermione and Ron, they worked better as friends, as much as she had wanted to make it work over the summer she had been too preoccupied with her parents for it to really go anywhere. And it may have been the saving grace of their friendship because she was to distracted over the summer with the aftermath of the war to understand herself, how she had changed and intern how she understood her relationships. Hermione and Ron had been friends for ages and now that she was back at school, Hermione could see it clearly. The spark was simply not there, and in the way she saw Harry like a brother, it was hard to not see Ron in a similar sense. Hermione was sure of herself and her feelings, but she was also sure of Ron as an individual and she was sure of his feelings. He felt something for her and if she went about it in the wrong way it wouldn't go well.

Hermione twirled her quill in her fingers, "We've seen each other at every meal and in the classes, we have together."

Ron smiled at her and shook his head, "But we," he gestured between them "haven't spent any time together."

Merlin this was going to be more difficult than she thought. "Yes I know Ron, but I've hardly had any time. Between all my classes and head duties, I haven't really had a spare moment."

He looked at her again "I know, but maybe we can hang out over the weekend? There's going to be a going-away party for Harry you're coming right?"

"Yes.... of course." In actuality Hermione had forgotten all about Harry's party, Harry wasn't leaving, he would just be at Hogwarts half of the time. In her opinion, the party should have been a celebration for his position. As much as she felt Harry deserved to stay at school he also deserved to feel good about why he was leaving. But they were Gryffindors, and a party was a party.

"Oh good well, it will be nice to see you." Ron grinned at her and pulled a book out of his bag. Gods he was staying wasn't he.

Ron saw her eyeing his book and opened it. "Just thought I'd stay and study a bit."

Hermione bit back a laugh. "Ron, when have you ever studied ahead of time?"

Ron glanced down at his book and waved his arm "Oh you know, just thought I'd start off my last year with some good study habits." He glanced over at her with a grin.

This time she did laugh and smiled. "Ok." Hermione moved to go back to her work but she couldn't. 

Risking Ron seeing what she was actually researching seemed like a bad idea. Hermione pulled out a textbook for another class and began to pretend to do work that she hadn't already finished. Hermione snuck a glance at Ron who it seemed was also pretending to work, old habits die hard and it looked like Ron's ability to study was not going to be what did he say becoming a good habit. Hermione grumbled to herself and busied herself, she could make it look like she was studying for at least twenty more minutes.

The minutes dragged by and Ron seemed like he wouldn't leave, so it left Hermione having to think of an excuse twenty minutes later. She couldn't exactly go back to her room, not after seeing Ginny and Harry heading that way. No, she couldn't subject herself to that again, and she couldn't stay in the library with Ron.

She gathered her things and put them in her bag. Careful to not word it as an invitation Hermione took a breath, "I have to go return my books and then I'm heading to the astronomy tower to get an assignment done." It was the only class she hadn't gotten any work done in ahead of time, so at least there was something she could do. Still, her astronomy assignment wasn't due for over a month and had only been assigned the day prior.

***

Hermione usually had a rather fast walk, but she meant to take her time getting to the tower, wasting as much as she could. Oh, her letter, yes that would be a perfect detour. Hermione turned on her heels and continued her walk to drop off the letter. It only took an extra ten minutes. And she was back on her way to the astronomy tower dragging her feet the whole way. The tower was dark, but it didn't bother her, she set her bag down and pulled out her astronomy textbook. In hindsight, it had been an awful idea. Hermione's mind was too preoccupied with everything she had been researching in the library to focus on her assignment. So Hermione compromised and went to look over the edge of the tower. She looked up to the sky searching for something familiar. There it was Cygnus, the swan, the very same that she had stared at while on the run. The stars were one of the tings that had stayed with her, and while they changed as the sky shifted around her, there were always stars. As she looked at the stars, they twinkled down back at her, almost as if they recognized her. She sighed taking them in, for all of the stress and hardships Hermione was facing, the stars brought a comfort. 

There was a shuffle behind her, Hermione spun around and gasped, "Merlin you scared me." She lowered her wand that she didn't even realize she had raised.

Theo stood at the top of the stairs laughing, "You were scared? I thought you were about to just hex me. My life flashed before my eyes." He held his hand up his hands in surrender. "Its nearly pitch black up here, I assumed there wasn't anyone up here."

Hermione leaned back against the railing, "I came up here to... well you know the astronomy assignment."

Theo laughed, "Yes, I came up here with the same excuse. Lucky it was assigned yeaterday I was about out of excuses. Who are you avoiding tonight?"

Hermione scoffed, "Well you're quite perceptive. Fine yes first I was avoiding Ginny and Harry," She grimaced, "then I was avoiding Ron."

Theo walked over to the left of her and sat down swinging his legs over the edge. "I don't envy you, avoiding two weasels in one night, whew tough." Theo chuckled.

"Yes, well out with it, who are you avoiding?" Hermione bent down and sat beside the railing.

"Me? well usually Draco, Blaise, either of the Greengrasses and Pansy." He let out his own shutter. "mostly Pansy, but tonight, I'm here on my own accord. I just needed a moment to myself."  
She laughed at that, "Pansys that bad?"

He began to rummage around in his bag, "Oh you have no idea, Its finally gotten into her head that Draco isn't and hasn't been interested, and now she’s latched on to me with her claws. It's all I can do to get her to leave me alone, we used to be friends you know. I'd imagine that I might be able to free myself by Christmas but we'll see. Please though, if you see her looking my way, send a small, tiny, little stinging hex her way. I think maybe I can train her out of it, negative reinforcement you know?"

Hermione laughed, "That's awful, but it could work. Granted its enough for her to be uncomfortable and not notice."

He pulled something silver out of his bag. "Hmm, that's what I was thinking. Sorry, you don't mind do you, want one?" Theo pulled out a cigarette from the silver case. Holding it to his lips and lighting it.

Hermione shook her head. "Go ahead, and thank you but, I'm fine."

Theo took a drag and pulled it from his lips, blowing the smoke to his left away from Hermione. "Sorry, I forgot, Gryffindor golden girl and all, you're above it."  
She laughed "Funny, expectations. Not everyone is what they seem you know?"

Theo raised an eyebrow. Hermione continued, "Golden girl, top of the class, head girl. Everyone seems to think I have it all together." Hermione was actually quite familiar with the cigarette. The stress of her parent's affliction over the summer led her to restless nights that led her to reconnect with an old childhood friend that led her to interesting parties with even more interesting substances. She had been held up as the golden girl, with high standards forced to prove herself for too long. And she had been fortunate over the summer, she was surrounded by people she didn't know, and they didn't know her either. For the first time, she didn't have to prove anything and there was nobody to disappoint. During the day she was preoccupied with her parents and the repercussions of magic, and at night she was a girl without a single thing to care about. None of those she spent her evenings with would have even known who or what she was, and what she had survived and endured. Hermione shuffled around in her own bag and pulled out her own case. While she didn't smoke often, it was a welcome distraction, one she wished she would have thought of earlier as it may have brought some relief for the dam of stress and responsibilities that was threatening to burst. "It's a good thing they're right." Hermione held a cigarette in between two of her fingers and swirled it in the air lighting it with wandless magic. She held it to her lips and inhaled. She turned back to Theo "Could you image the scandal if they thought otherwise?"

Theo chuckled. "Then it's a good thing they're correct."

Hermione smiled at him"You do realize those are a Muggle product?"

Theo recoiled and held the cigarette towards her and his other arm against his forehead. "A muggle product? Merlin, how long do you think I have then before it ends me? Days, minutes, seconds?"

Hermione held back a laugh but not a smirk. "Very funny. How do you even get them?"

Theo pulled himself back up to sit upright, "Same as you I'd assume, went into a petrol station and purchased some."

Hermione was surprised but didn't let on, "Hmmm, okay. And by the looks of it, you're running low?"

Theo shrugged, "Yah but I'll get more over the weekend, I'm not bothered."

Her suspicions were correct, while he knew they were a muggle product, he didn't know how susceptible they were to magic. She waved her arm. "No need, simple gemino and you'll have more."

He blinked at her, "A duplication charm? How long until it loses potency?"

"It won't"

He held the case up and looked at it, "Hmmm, really?" He looked at it her over the case and tapped it with his wand. "Thanks, Granger."

Hermione smiled, "Youre quite welcome." She flicked the bud over the edge of the tower and rose. "Enjoy your night Theodore."

"Theo."

Hermione turned back. "What?"

He shrugged, "It's Theo."

Hermione was perplexed. As much as she should have been unnerved by her chat with the Slytherin he wasn't what she thought. Those he had surrounded himself with led her to believe he would be like any other Slytherin. Cold, conniving and unkind, but that wasn't the case. He had been rather pleasant so in that case, "Goodnight Theo."

"Goodnight Granger." She didn't bother correcting him. After all, here she was Granger. She made her way back to her room and had a lot to think about. Hermione anticipated a response from the healers with her parents and was eager to continue her research. But she was fortunate and sleep was generous as her head hit her pillow.

***

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this was only half of a chapter that I had written but it was getting long and there was too much information. SO I cut it.
> 
> Before anything happens- which will no doubt take a while as this is a slow burn- I do want to mention some things. Hermione and Dracos relationship will progress slowly and while he isn't a blood elitest who worships Voldemort he isn't going to be running around worshipping Hermione. Draco will be an asshole and I don't you'll like him. There will be a lot of toxicity and the relationship won't be all lovey-dovey. So as a precursor *trigger warning* going forward. I'll make sure to make warnings on the appropriate chapters.


End file.
